The abacus, known also by other names, such as soroban (Japan), suanpan (China), supan (Korea), and schoty (Russia), is still in everyday use in parts of Asia. An abacus can be easily manufactured and does not require electrical power for operation. Even with the prevalence of pocket calculators, many individuals prefer the abacus, and are highly proficient in its use.
Use of the abacus in teaching mathematics is believed to be helpful because the abacus provides for a visual representation of numbers. This visual representation can make it easier to learn the concepts behind number systems and performing arithmetic. Concepts such as decimal points, place value, carrying, borrowing, and the like are translated from abstract ideas into physical operations that can be observed on the abacus. Moreover, proficiency in performing calculations on an abacus can be translated into proficiency in performing mental arithmetic by visualizing the abacus while performing the calculations.
In recognition of the benefits the abacus can provide in teaching mathematic concepts, some schools use the abacus in basic arithmetic classes. In addition, many different abacus training schools have become available to enable individuals to develop proficiency in abacus use.
Traditional teaching in an abacus school relies on an expert instructor. To check the student's progress, the instructor observes each individual's manipulations of the beads. This observation is necessary, as it is often not sufficient to look at the final result obtained to determine if the student is performing operations correctly (particularly when the student makes errors). Unfortunately, this requires intensive use of the instructor during early phases of training, limiting the number of students that can be taught simultaneously.
As students progress, drills are performed by calling out numbers and operations to be performed on the abacus. The students perform the calculations, and then check that they have obtained correct results. While these drills can improve student's speed, little feedback is obtained when errors are made as to what the student did wrong to cause the error. Moreover, since no permanent record of the operations performed on the abacus remains, it is difficult to determine the cause of the error, even when the student is making systematic errors.
While some attempts to provide computer-based abacus training have been made, to date most available systems are very rudimentary and lack many desired features.